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Thursday, March 08, 2012

‘JYJ assault controversy’… The media and Sasaeng fans’s violence?

From JYJ3:

“Jaejoong oppa, you’re taking a photograph now, right?”
Sasaeng fans were persistent and swift. Without a doubt, ‘sasaeng fans’
caught up with JYJ’s Kim Jaejoong during his interview with ‘Oh My Star’
last summer.

That day, two females in their early 20s waited at the door of the
office anxiously and hired taxis to go after Kim Jaejoong’s car. In the
end, it disrupted his schedule. We were certain that his face hardened
for a while when he heard about the constant appearances of ‘sasaeng
fans’ who were unconcerned about the interview held in the news
organization.

In the end, troubles occurred. Actually, the rumor regarding ‘sasaeng
fans’ had been disclosed in the fandom websites and the ‘uncomfortable
truth’ became a major problem. Meanwhile, a medium revealed a ‘JYJ
assault audio file’ in the afternoon of Mar. 6. The voice of Kim
Jaejoong swearing at his fans angrily and occasional sounds of assault
were recorded in the audio file.

Kim Jaejoong: “It will be better if I am put into prison.” Why?

In the beginning of February, a video of ‘Park Yoochun fan assault’
was circulating on the Internet. At that time, management agency C-JeS
explained the misunderstanding and the incident. Once again, the fans
spread and refuted an analysis file about the video. While a female fan
wanted to place her hand on Park Yoochun’s face, he raised his hand to
stop her.

After this, JYJ’s fan assault rumor persisted at the center of
various entertainment bulletin boards and fan clubs. The disclosure of
this audio file also reached them. This is a review about the existence
of ‘sasaeng fans’ and the stress they had caused for idol members.

In particular, the audio exposed Kim Jaejoong’s direct swearing and
assault at teenage fans. Strong criticisms about JYJ began to surface
again. If one do not understand the freakiness of sasaeng fan culture,
it is inevitable that he or she will criticize Kim Jaejoong for saying,
“It will be better if I am put into prison” or for complaining about the
stress that he received and using abusive language.

Out of all days, the entertainment medium disclosed the audio file on
Mar. 6 when JYJ has a South America tour ahead. A spokesperson from the
management agency said, “We are in the midst of understanding the
information accurately.” It was a situation where they could not
disclose anything. It was the time when backlash and conspiracy occurred
among the JYJ fans due to the uncomfortable relationship and lawsuit
with SM. If so, how should we view the sasaeng fan assault dispute?

“Meanwhile, of course JYJ and the fandom were harmed by the sasaeng
fans. Due to the sasaeng fans’ atrocities, fans who genuinely like JYJ
were also criticized. Because of the accidents caused sasaeng taxis,
events and performances were delayed several times… However, it is
difficult to lodge reports even though it is a crime. The sasaeng fans
are really like black decayed teeth…”

After knowing Kim Jaejoong’s assault dispute, a fan complained to the
reporter. The fan found recorded accidents and performances that
sasaeng fans had harmed general fans who cherished the stars. Of course,
the sasaeng fans were a nusiance to the star, management agency and the
general fans. The stalker-like behavior of sasaeng fans had already
been an object of criticism earlier.

The above are situations when TVXQ and JYJ fans were harmed due to
the sasaeng fans. Using Sasaeng taxis to chase the idols to their
lodgings and places where they had schedules, they were causing stress
to the idols. Sasaeng fans have taken things too far and their actions
can be generally classified under the criminal act of a stalker.

Sasaeng fans that do nothing but violate, learn from Seo Taiji fandom!

To celebrate the 20th anniversary of debut of ‘Seo Taiji and boys’,
they have created ‘Seo Taiji Forest’ in a tropical rain forest of
Brazil. They have collected donations from fans and created a Seo Taiji
Memorial.

The reason that JYJ’s assault controversy can’t be simply took as a
case of popular idol group assaulting fan is that, the acts of these
‘Sasaeng fans’ have gotten over the limit. (T/N: a SBS documentary),
already pointed out the danger of sasaeng fans in October 2008, in an
episode called ‘Fandom reportage – Children who run as sasaeng’.

Indeed, what if this assault controversy becomes a blessing in
disguise? This is an opportunity of self-reflection for the sasaeng fans
who, under the guise of fans, behave like stalkers.
The stars’ assault and verbal abuse are shocking and are the behavior
that can be condemned. But recalling the fact that stars are also human
beings and that they also have human rights, we can see that actually,
the violence took its beginning from sasaeng fans. It’s the
uncomfortable lesson taken from this assault controversy.